Posts Tagged ‘education’

“Why do sharks swim in saltwater? Because pepper water makes them sneeze!”

Jokes aside, why is saltwater so important? Find out using our educational resources about ocean salinity.

Along with our expedition, there are many web resources for educators wishing to incorporate oceanography and salinity into their curricula. This post highlights some of the resources and points of contact for Aquarius and SPURS expedition.

Example of one of the many freely-available assets from interactive concept maps and searchable on the COSEE-OS website.

Second, Phoebe Jekielek, also from COSEE-OS, joined us in Woods Hole for the pre-expedition media event. She certainly got up to speed on SPURS if you have questions! Currently available resources on the SPURS website include a Sampling Strategy Challenge, using the JPL Trajectory Tracking Tool, designed for in-class use to introduce teachers and students to one of the modeling tools SPURS scientists use to plan their cruise. Check back for more materials, pictures and interviews highlighting the scientists, technology and instrumentation of the cruise and the importance of understanding ocean salinity. Phoebe collected much of that information last week.

Example of the viewing window in the JPL Trajectory Tracking Tool showing “balloons” representing deployed drifters, long/lat coordinates and the “drifter track”output after running the simulation.

Dr. Andrey Shcherbina aboard the R/V Knorr with seagliders being deployed during the SPURS cruise.

Other, more general, resources include the NASA Physical Oceanography Program production on ocean motion dedicated to providing materials about ocean surface currents using figures, movies and links to other resources. Additionally, this site provides useful data visualization tools for use by teachers and students.

The BRIDGE also provides a wide selection of teacher-approved marine-related resources.

But the biggest resource for the next month is the team at sea on Knorr working on SPURS. I would welcome feedback and questions from students and teachers on my postings. Your questions might stimulate fresh directions on the postings and there is interest from those aboard ship in helping to answer your questions. Hope to hear from you soon!